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Parents feeling more stressed during pandemic than those without kids, survey finds

By:
Scripps National

Posted at 4:45 PM, May 21, 2020

and last updated2020-05-21 16:45:05-04

A new survey gives a more in-depth look at how the pandemic is taking a toll on parents.

The American Psychological Association's Stress in America report found parents are feeling significantly more stress than adults without children.

The pressure comes from access to healthcare, missing milestones and managing distance learning.

“So, they're basically doing two jobs,” said Dr. Vaile Wright, Senior Director of Health Care Innovation with APA. “They're working remotely for their own job while trying to be the best teacher that they can be for their kids.”

Parents are also more likely to stress about meeting basic needs like food and housing.

About 70% of parents said it was an issue, versus 44% of non-parents.

Another significant finding shows most Americans are concerned about the government response to the pandemic.

That stress is across party lines and throughout the country.

There was also a big jump in concern for the economy.

“It might not be surprising that we saw such a spike when it comes to stress related to the economy, but it really is the highest that we've seen since 2007, 2008,” said Wright. “We've really seen this slow decline of people's concerns about the economy and clearly, that's just no longer the case.”

Normally, the APA conducts this survey once a year. Amid the coronavirus, they're now checking in with Americans every month.

The APA hopes it will help policymakers with addressing mental health needs.

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